Tían Velvar

[Cyril Khan]

“Who is this man who sits in silence, but his words pierce when he speaks? Who is this who follows the old ways so strictly, that even his sword no longer appears? Who is this who, through the Force, sees all as equals, but perceives the world as an illusion? What makes this man different from all other Jedi?”

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As a Jedi, many things stand out about this Tían Velvar. He stands at a mediocre height of one and eight tenth meters, and weighs just above ninety-five kilograms. This relatively small size has affected the way he trains and deals with physical conflicts. Naturally, he has green eyes and light skin with dark brown hair, but due to one skill he possesses, he can change these features telepathically. As he has aged, his face has become host to a distinctive hairstyle; his pure white hairs fall neatly down around his shoulders, yet leave the top of his head fully bald; his chin holds a thin, short, pointed goatee, and long, sharp moustaches curve around each side of his mouth but leave the region below the nose hairless. Master Velvar often puzzles those who do not understand the intricacies of the Force; he has reached what is considered a weakened age of sixty-three, but, for him, the Force preserved his body and mind in conjunction. He may seem wrinkled with time and stress and his hairs fall white, but his experianced connection to the Force has saved him from the total decay of aging.

After meeting this enigma of a Jedi, many find that his physical attributes do not show age like those initially seen. As a personal rule, this Force-attuned Jedi does not believe that only meditation can advance one’s connection with the Force but instead that physical training makes as much a difference if not more. He sees that a physical body reflects the image of that being as they exist in the Force. By overcoming the things that weaken the body, one becomes more in tune with the Force in a way that cannot be reached with meditation. In order to reach his physical peak, Tían chose a workout that equalizes strength and dexterity. He exercises his muscles with cardiovascular drills that move weights at long intervals, increase balance, and connect the mind to the body. Every day he does his fitness routine, and the effects work as expected. His strength works in hand with his agility, making him capable of moving swiftly with impeccable balance and grace.

As a master in the Jedi Order, he sees himself as physically detached from the world; for him, his mind and body do not differ, and every action his body makes, the Force makes in reality. The proof of this appears in his everyday life; every physical technique he commits appears to take very little effort for the Force dependent Jedi. In the sparring room alone, he moves with such grace that even a novice can see the link between his mind and body. One can say he does not think, but only acts by instinct after so much time of personal training, yet he would say that his body responds instantly to his mind, for the Force considers them the same. While his technique seems flawless, and his strength appears beyond his true capability, many other Jedi can say they surpass him in certain physical fields. However, very few have as strong a mixture that results in not only all of the body working together, but also the mind and body.

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The absence of a lightsaber makes the most noticeable aspect of this Jedi. He refuses to use a weapon, except in teaching how to use one. In a fight, he will use a modified unarmed style to disarm and subdue an opponent. He uses swift movements, balance, and pinpoint accuracy to dodge and overpower his foes. Some people have tried to make him carry a lightsaber as he aged, arguing that time would only weaken his unarmed style. However, Tían rebutts all by saying, "The day I believe that the Force cannot preserve me will be the day it does not."

When teaching the art of the sword, he will offer only two forms. He took time to only learn and master Shii-cho and Soresu. The former uses only basic strikes, which follows the Jedi’s philosophy that complete mastery of basics can easily combat anything complex. The latter makes an impenetrable defense, which compliments the Jedi’s pacifistic nature.

Pacifism runs deep in Tían, and it originated in his blood. Before his time, his family traditionally took roles as Jedi counselors and avoided all combat and perfected diplomacy. As a child, Tían decided to follow this path, but as he became of age he diverted slightly. He did not like either his family’s pacifism or the ways of sentinels or guardians. He could not stand idle while innocents fell victim to attacks, and certain people did not react well with diplomacy. He modified his stance of pacifism; he allowed himself able to fight if necessary, but only if personally attacked or on defending. The techniques within his fighting style cannot work except with the aggressive momentum of an attacker. He will resort to as many methods as possible before allowing combat to enter a conflict. In this stance, he never carries a weapon; he believes the Force exists as the only tool needed for any task, including combat. Any item for killing makes the inner spirit savage and unruly.

“Senses create illusions, and so can I”​

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Through the Force, Tían has achieved many techniques. He has learned all the common powers of the light and dark. He fears neither side, and believes that one must understand both to understand the Force. Besides his physical and mental connection with the Force, the craft of illusions takes the heart of master for this Jedi. He truly believes that all the senses of the body create illusions of certain aspects of the Force. Through this philosophy, he has discovered the arts of understanding illusions; he knows how to make them and how to detect them. His master of these arts appear in a technique he labels, Force Hallucination. He takes the effects of Dreamscape and alters them to seem more real and makes the illusion harder to break. In his strongest grasp, the victim literally has to fight their own mind to escape the illusion, assuming the recognize it. This power marks the height of the Jedi’s illusion mastery, and he tends to use any other mind trick with barely any blemish ever.

Minus the major differences mentioned, Tían does not differ much from the other Jedi. He will use any equipment that may become necessary for him, and many of his daily events follow that of others. He still appears different for the reasons above and for minor details. In many instances he wears robes of unusual colors, most commonly blue, green or white. He also tends to reveal his physical detachment through simple conversation; he sees all ages and genders as the same and treats them all the same. He follows rules strictly and finds little approval in others. Many people find him extremely rough and overly strict, and few like him, much less make friends with him, after getting to know him. Even like this, Tían rarely lets rough emotions, like depression, touch him, and he seems to both live and die in the presence and absence of other beings. He recognizes it as the paradox of his life and others.

Moments in the Life of a Jedi

Spar with a Master
Teardrops of an Order
Of Phantoms and Traitors
Jedi Conclave at Ossus